Car wobbling when over 100km/h

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Dylan_G

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Hi guys,

My vehicle is a 2003 Toyota Corolla with 320k on the clock.

Late last year I took it for a service at Cartime and was informed there was an issue with the stabilizer arms and CV boots. Had both replaced.

I did not get a chance to drive the car properly for about 3 weeks after that and eventually when I did, I felt a shuddering/wobbling when the car was over 100km/h. It pretty much consistently starts when hitting 100km/h.

I called them and they advised before I bring the car back in, I should get a balancing done. I needed new tyres anyway and so I a full set and balancing and alignment done. No issues or concerns from the tyre guys. The wobbling continued.

When I went back to Cartime, right off the bat they were saying it's due to the rims being buckled or damaged. I explained that I got new tyres put on and it shouldn't be that, or the tyre guys would have pointed it out. The technicians went for a test drive and said it was the bearings. I was quoted R3180 including labour to replace the bearings.

Not fully trusting the diagnosis, I went to Toyota in Edenvale. Immediately when starting the test drive with the foreman, he said its the inner cv joint as he could hear a specific noise when letting go of the clutch (something about too much play). Once we tested it out on the highway he confirmed his feeling of inner cv joint as he said the whole car was wobbling, not just the steering wheel and he said he could feel it on one side more than the other. We last replaced the CV joints in the car approx 4 years ago.

Then when getting the quote they advised it's the "driveshaft". At this point, I'm confused as I didn't think the driveshaft and CV joint were the same thing but whatever. It was R7360 to recondition the driveshaft or R14364 for a new one with labour coming to R1650 for either option.

So in this case, what should I do here? Get *another* diagnosis to confirm what is actually wrong? Are one of them right?
 
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Whatever the diagnosis, get the Dealer's to put it on paper. Read what they write there and make sure it is what you and they both agree is the problem.

Patiently wait for them to do this before you leave with your copy.

Bonus points for getting the Dealer to sign it too.

You'd be amazed how quickly the issue is identified and resolved by just insisting on the above.
 
The problem with these sorts of car issues is that every person you ask has a different opinion of what the problem is and you end up spending tens of thousands of rands replacing parts that don't need replacing until you finally replace the part that was causing the issue all along. Dealerships are probably the worst for this even though, in theory, their mechanics should be the experts. Find yourself a dependable independent mechanic who knows these old Corollas inside out and who isn't going to rip you a new one.
 
deweyzeph said:
The problem with these sorts of car issues is that every person you ask has a different opinion of what the problem is and you end up spending tens of thousands of rands replacing parts that don't need replacing until you finally replace the part that was causing the issue all along. Dealerships are probably the worst for this even though, in theory, their mechanics should be the experts. Find yourself a dependable independent mechanic who knows these old Corollas inside out and who isn't going to rip you a new one.
Click to expand...
Excellent advice, I was about to say so too. Find a toyota guys who has been working on these cars for decades, probably runs his own small operation. That's the guy you need, the one who will tell you exactly what part to buy and he will replace it for you
 
LCBXX said:
Whatever the diagnosis, get the Dealer's to put it on paper. Read what they write there and make sure it is what you and they both agree is the problem.

Patiently wait for them to do this before you leave with your copy.

Bonus points for getting the Dealer to sign it too.

You'd be amazed how quickly the issue is identified and resolved by just insisting on the above.
Click to expand...
Yeah, right now no diagnosis was specified on the quote, just the part for repair and the costs.
 
deweyzeph said:
The problem with these sorts of car issues is that every person you ask has a different opinion of what the problem is and you end up spending tens of thousands of rands replacing parts that don't need replacing until you finally replace the part that was causing the issue all along. Dealerships are probably the worst for this even though, in theory, their mechanics should be the experts. Find yourself a dependable independent mechanic who knows these old Corollas inside out and who isn't going to rip you a new one.
Click to expand...
Thats exactly it.

Had an old-timer in Durban who we used to go to. Now in JHB and don't know who's reliable, hence resorting to going to Toyota direct.

I will look around for a Toyota specialist.
 
Another question... is the "drivetrain" recondition/replacement unreasonable in a car with 320k km? Thinking about it now, we've probably never done that one before.
 
Wheel alignment where they know what they are doing.
 
Dylan_G said:
Hi guys,

My vehicle is a 2003 Toyota Corolla.

Late last year I took it for a service at Cartime and was informed there was an issue with the stabilizer arms and CV boots. Had both replaced.

I did not get a chance to drive the car properly for about 3 weeks after that and eventually when I did, I felt a shuddering/wobbling when the car was over 100km/h. It pretty much consistently starts when hitting 100km/h.

I called them and they advised before I bring the car back in, I should get a balancing done. I needed new tyres anyway and so I a full set and balancing and alignment done. No issues or concerns from the tyre guys. The wobbling continued.

When I went back to Cartime, right off the bat they were saying it's due to the rims being buckled or damaged. I explained that I got new tyres put on and it shouldn't be that, or the tyre guys would have pointed it out. The technicians went for a test drive and said it was the bearings. I was quoted R3180 including labour to replace the bearings.

Not fully trusting the diagnosis, I went to Toyota in Edenvale. Immediately when starting the test drive with the foreman, he said its the inner cv joint as he could hear a specific noise when letting go of the clutch (something about too much play). Once we tested it out on the highway he confirmed his feeling of inner cv joint as he said the whole car was wobbling, not just the steering wheel and he said he could feel it on one side more than the other. We last replaced the CV joints in the car approx 4 years ago.

Then when getting the quote they advised it's the "driveshaft". At this point, I'm confused as I didn't think the driveshaft and CV joint were the same thing but whatever. It was R7360 to recondition the driveshaft or R14364 for a new one with labour coming to R1650 for either option.

So in this case, what should I do here? Get *another* diagnosis to confirm what is actually wrong? Are one of them right?
Click to expand...
So here is the thing - did the problem exist before the work was done to replace the CV joint boots? If not, then the problem IS related to the so-called "repair work" done. It is that simple.

How did they go about the boot replacement? Typically that means the removal of the drive shafts anyway. I bet you, if you get a reliable private mechanic to take them off again you will find it is just a failure to tighten/torque down the bolts holding the drive shaft/s to the engine/ wheels.

BUT, now the bad news is, you might have ended up bending the drive shaft/s in the interim and then that becomes a real problem.
 
Dylan_G said:
Another question... is the "drivetrain" recondition/replacement unreasonable in a car with 320k km? Thinking about it now, we've probably never done that one before.
Click to expand...

I think that fact should have been in the OP. Toyota engines can last forever, but suspension and drivetrain components will wear. It's hard to disentangle the issues as Geoff notes.
 
Geoff.D said:
So here is the thing - did the problem exist before the work was done to replace the CV joint boots? If not, then the problem IS related to the so-called "repair work" done. It is that simple.
Click to expand...
This was my thinking as well. Which is why I went back to them in the first place.

Geoff.D said:
How did they go about the boot replacement?
Click to expand...
No idea.

Geoff.D said:
BUT, now the bad news is, you might have ended up bending the drive shaft/s in the interim and then that becomes a real problem.
Click to expand...
Motherf***er. Let us hope not.
 
Gordon_R said:
I think that fact should have been in the OP. Toyota engines can last forever, but suspension and drivetrain components will wear. It's hard to disentangle the issues as Geoff notes.
Click to expand...
Yeah my bad, I only thought about that now when listing all the things we've done with the car over the years.
 
Dylan_G said:
Yeah my bad, I only thought about that now when listing all the things we've done with the car over the years.
Click to expand...

After a certain time/distance cars enter a kind of 'purgatory', where a lot of things need fixing, but it's difficult to prioritise which are urgent and necessary. I have a year 2000 Camry (less distance at 190K), and similar concerns about noises and rattles...

Sometimes stuff breaks that you completely forgot about. In my case it was the cambelt, but fortunately there was no damage to the engine.
 
Shuddering after 100 is rear, before 100 is front. Something is out on your rear tyres, either balancing or possibly some damage to camber etc.

It could be your front cv ( assuming its a front wheel drive ) but you would feel it way earlier than 100, easily from 60.

Stupid question, same tyre/tread patterns? You can get a wobble from differant patterns but my gut, with a post 100 shudder, check your rear rims for dents and balancing. Very difficult to straighten a rear camber on a front wheel drive car, thats normally from some major chassis impact.
 
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